Syrian troops kill eight Nusra Front militants

Damascus: A total of eight fighters of the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front were killed during clashes with the Syrian government troops in the country's Daraa province Thursday, a monitoring group said.

They were killed in Sheikh Misken town, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Nusra Front and like-minded groups unleashed an offensive last week to recapture the government troops' positions in the Sheikh Misken area, but the Syrian troops shelled the Nusra positions and secured the eastern part of Sheikh Misken Wednesday amid ongoing intense battles there, Xinhua reported.